'I almost became a widow': Ada Choi discusses husband suffering heart attack in Singapore

Hong Kong actress Ada Choi has shared that her actor husband Max Zhang is doing better after suffering a heart attack back in April.

In an article by Sing Tao Daily published on Sunday (Aug 17), she said that they cherish each other more after the incident.

Ada, who turns 52 in September, was speaking to reporters during promotions for her new drama Behind the Queens.

"I have to be grateful, I almost became a widow!" she said. "He almost died in a foreign land."

Ada, who has three children with Max, said that the family were in Singapore on a holiday when the heart attack happened.

"He suddenly couldn't breathe. It had happened twice before in March. I had asked a doctor to do an electrocardiogram (ECG) and everything was alright," she recalled.

"When we were travelling, he suddenly couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't speak, and had to sit down. We were waiting to board a tour boat at the time and were worried about him. He told us to go ahead without him, and I felt so bad leaving him alone, not knowing what had happened."

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Max is a participant in the latest season of Chinese singing reality show Call Me By Fire, and he revealed the incident to Korean-American singer-actor Lee Seung-hyun in a video released on Aug 9.

The 51-year-old told Seung-hyun: "I felt that I was in an abyss and falling through it and couldn't hold on to anything. I told myself I couldn't die there because I was overseas and Ada was taking care of our three children. If I were to die suddenly, what would happen to her... I felt I would die if I closed my eyes."

Ada told reporters that the day after his heart attack, Max revealed to her what had happened.

"He was crying while talking to me, I've never seen him do that," Ada added.

After returning to Hong Kong, he underwent tests and a CT scan, which showed 80 per cent of his coronary artery to be blocked. He had to get a stent implanted immediately.

"I cried on my knees when I found out. I only knew then that it only takes a moment for someone to be gone forever," Ada said. "I held him and thanked god. Fortunately, he was fine.

"If anything had happened to him, I would have gone crazy!"

Max has since quit consuming oily and spicy food, despite being a native of Sichuan. He also returned to acting after being cleared by a doctor, and the couple are now taking steps to do aerobic exercises and be healthy together.

drimac@asiaone.com